In November (2009) I joined a group of people at the University of Texas at Austin handing out books with Living Waters’ Origin into Schools project. While we were on the campus doing that, we meet one of the professors from UT who was a self proclaimed atheist. I asked him what evidence he had that evolution is true and he said it was too complicated to go into on the streets. One of the members of our team had a chance to sit down with him that day. After the event, I looked up his contact information on the UT web site and have exchanged afew emails with him. He offered to get together if I ever found myself in Austin again. As it turns out, I spent this week in Austin and had the chance to sit down with him and have a cup of coffee together.
I had three basic goals in meeting with him.First, I wanted to understand how he came to his atheistic beliefs. Second, I wanted a chance to clearly present the Biblical Gospel to him. Third, above all, I wanted God to be glorified by the meeting.
I believe that all three objectives were met.
I asked him a series of questions starting with work, then to family, then to family history and finally to spiritual background. As he chrnoicaled his spiritual background from organized religion, to studying the Bible and then to atheism, he indicated that science could always explain his position with science, there was essentially no need for God. Eventually the Bible study stopped as he had no need for it. There are a couple things I’d especially like to make note of from our conversation.
I had wondered why he objected to Origin into Schools. It seems to me if a person is an atheist then they should not object to the preaching of the Gospel. From their perspective, the preacher believes in something that does not exist and is teaching others about the same thing. He agreed with that part. His objection to Origin into Schools was regarding criticism of scientific work – Origin of Species. He went on to say that he also gets angry when people attack “science” like when they claim that autism is caused by vaccinations.
He said we have common ancestors with the trees back to single cell. But he said he does not know where the single cell life form came from. I asked if God could have created it. He said yes.
Then we talked about kinds. I said could God have created those kinds like the Bible says. He said yes. But then he added that 6000 years is not enough time for the changes in species within the kinds to have occured.
He also asked, why God had to rest after the six days of creation. I told him it was a model for man and that God neither slumbers nor sleeps. I asked him if he would use that as an objection to God on the day of judgment.
I was able to share the Law and Gospel with him. I gave him an amazing body Gospel tract, a print out of a Darwin tract and a copy of Mark Cahill’s One Heartbeat Away.
It was a good meeting. He said to call again next time I am in Austin. I’ll keep the dialog open.
